This invention relates to game playing services for gaming machines such as slot machines and video poker machines. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods of providing game services to game players such as ticket validation.
There are a wide variety of associated devices that can be connected to a gaming machine such as a slot machine or video poker machine. Some examples of these devices are lights, ticket printers, card readers, speakers, bill validators, ticket readers, coin acceptors, display panels, key pads, coin hoppers and button pads. Many of these devices are built into the gaming machine or components associated with the gaming machine such as a top box which usually sits on top of the gaming machine.
Typically, utilizing a master gaming controller, the gaming machine controls various combinations of devices that allow a player to play a game on the gaming machine and also encourage game play on the gaming machine. For example, a game played on a gaming machine usually requires a player to input money or indicia of credit into the gaming machine, indicate a wager amount, and initiate a game play. These steps require the gaming machine to control input devices, including bill validators and coin acceptors, to accept money into the gaming machine and recognize user inputs from devices, including key pads and button pads, to determine the wager amount and initiate game play. After game play has been initiated, the gaming machine determines a game outcome, presents the game outcome to the player and may dispense an award of some type depending on the outcome of the game.
As technology in the gaming industry progresses, the traditional method of dispensing coins or tokens as awards for winning game outcomes is being supplemented by ticket dispensers which print ticket vouchers that may be exchanged for cash or accepted as credit of indicia in other gaming machines for additional game play. An award ticket system, which allows award ticket vouchers to be dispensed and utilized by other gaming machines, increases the operational efficiency of maintaining a gaming machine and simplifies the player pay out process. An example of an award ticket system is the EZ pay ticket system by International Game Technology of Las Vegas, Nev.
Currently, ticket vouchers are primarily used as credit indicia for other gaming machines and may be exchanged for cash after the ticket voucher has been validated. However, ticket vouchers have many other potential uses. For example, a ticket voucher may be utilized as prize voucher, which may be redeemed for merchandise awarded for a particular game outcome, or as a service voucher for food, room upgrades or other forms of compensation.
An important component of an award ticket system is the ticket validation process. Typically, a game player""s satisfaction with an award ticket system is based upon the ease by which the ticket vouchers may be validated or utilized within the context of game playing. When the ticket validation process is difficult, a game player may become dissatisfied with the game playing area offering the award ticket system and frequent a game playing area without an award ticket system or a game playing area offering a simpler ticket validation process. As an example, the ticket voucher validation process is described in relation to the EZ pay system. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the components of the EZ pay ticket system. A first group of gaming machines, 65, 66, 67, 68, and 69 is shown connected to a first clerk validation terminal (CVT) 60 and a second group of gaming machines, 75, 76, 77, 78 and 79 is shown connected to a second CVT 70. All of the gaming machines print ticket vouchers which may be exchanged for cash or accepted as credit of indicia in other gaming machines. When the CVTs are not connected to one another, a ticket voucher printed from one gaming machine may be only be used as indicia of credit in another gaming machine which is in a group of gaming machines connected to the same clerk validation terminal. For example, an award ticket printed from gaming machine 65 might be used as credit of indicia in gaming machines 66, 67, 68 and 69, which are each connected to the CVT 60, but not in gaming machines 75, 76, 77, 78, and 79, which are each connected to the CVT 70.
The CVTs, 60 and 70, store ticket voucher information corresponding to the outstanding ticket vouchers that are waiting for redemption. This information is used when the tickets are validated and cashed out. The CVTs 60 and 70 store the information for the ticket vouchers printed by the gaming machines connected to the CVT. For example, CVT 60 stores ticket voucher information for ticket vouchers printed by gaming machines 65, 66, 67, 68, and 69. When a player wishes to cash out a ticket voucher and the CVT are not connected to one another, the player may redeem vouchers printed from a particular gaming machine at the CVT associated with the gaming machine. To cash out the ticket voucher, the ticket voucher is validated by comparing information obtained from the ticket with information stored within the CVT. After a ticket voucher has been cashed out, the CVT marks the ticket paid in a database to prevent a ticket voucher with similar information from being cashed multiple times.
Multiple groups of gaming machines connected to CVTs may be connected together in a cross validation network 45. The cross validation network is typically comprised of one or more concentrators 55 which accepts inputs from two or more CVTs and enables communications to and from the two or more CVTs using one communication line. The concentrator is connected to a front end controller 50 which may poll the CVTs for ticket voucher information. The front end controller is connected to an EZ pay server 10 which may provide a variety of information services for the award ticket system including accounting 20 and administration 15.
The cross validation network allows ticket vouchers generated by any gaming machine connected to the cross validation to be accepted by other gaming machines in the cross validation network 45. Additionally, the cross validation network allows a cashier at a cashier station 25, 30, and 35 to validate any ticket: voucher generated from a gaming machine within the cross validation network 45. To cash out a ticket voucher, a player may present a ticket voucher at one of the cashier stations 25, 30, and 35. Information obtained from the ticket voucher is used to validate the ticket by comparing information on the ticket with information stored on one of the CVTs connected to the cross validation network. As tickets are validated, this information may be sent to another computer 40 providing audit services.
In some instances, to validate and cash an EZ pay ticket voucher, a player must go to the location of the CVT associated with the gaming machines from which the ticket voucher was printed. When the CVTs are connected via a cross validation network, a player must locate a CVT or go to a cashier station at another location. On a large and crowded casino floor, a player may not wish to find the location of a CVT containing the redemption information needed to validate their ticket voucher or may not wish to locate, find and then wait in line at a cashier station to redeem their ticket voucher. Further, when the ticket voucher is for a service such as food or accommodations at a game playing area, a player may wish to take advantage of the service offered on the ticket voucher while continuing their game play or remaining in the game playing area. For example, when the ticket voucher is for a free meal, the player may wish to make a dinner reservation while continuing to play a game on a gaming machine or remaining near the gaming machine.
In view of the above, it would be desirable to provide a ticket voucher validation system for gaming machines that generate and accept ticket vouchers which overcome the limitations associated with finding a location to validate a ticket voucher for a game service.
This invention addresses the needs indicated above by providing a hand-held device having a wire-less communication interface, a display screen and a microprocessor which generates a number of game service interfaces on the display screen. The hand-held device may input ticket voucher information and communicate with a remote transaction server such that a ticket voucher may be validated. Additionally, the hand-held device may be used to provide a variety of gaming services using different game service interfaces provided on the device. These hand-held devices may be checked out by a game service representative in a secure manner such that a game service representative may roam a game playing area and provide various game services to game players in the game playing area using the hand-held device. These game services may include a ticket validation, a prize validation, a food service, an accommodation service or a gaming operations services.
One aspect of the present invention provides a hand-held device for providing a game service in a game playing area where the game playing area may be a casino, a restaurant, a hotel, a bar, or a store. The hand-held device can be generally characterized as including 1) a wire-less communication interface, 2) a display screen and 3) a microprocessor where the microprocessor receives game service transaction information from an input mechanism and sends game service transaction information to an output mechanism using the wire-less communication interface and generates one or more game service interfaces on the display screen for providing a game service transaction that enables the game service. Additionally, the hand-held device may include a memory storing game service transaction information from one or more game service transactions where the memory is removable from the hand-held device.
In preferred embodiments, the display screen may be a touch screen and the wire-less communication interface may be a spread spectrum or an infra-red communication interface. The input mechanism may be a card reader, a bar-code reader, a gaming machine, a transaction server, a storage device, a key board, a touch screen, a microphone or a personal digital assistant. The output mechanism may be a card reader, a printer, a transaction server, a gaming machine, a personal digital assistant or a storage device.
In the preferred embodiments, the game service may be a ticket validation, a prize validation, a food service, an accommodation service, or a gaming operations service. In particular, the game service may be an EZ pay ticket validation. The game service interface may be a registration interface, a transaction reconciliation interface, a prize validation interface, a ticket validation interface, a food service interface, an accommodation service interface, a gaming operation interface, a login interface, an input/output interface, a voice interface and an EZ pay ticket validation interface. The game service transaction may be a ticket validation request, a ticket validation reply, operator information, a prize validation request, a prize validation reply, a food service request, a food service reply, an accommodation request, an accommodation reply, a maintenance request, a maintenance reply, a print request, a print reply, or a transaction confirmation or an EZ pay ticket validation request or an EZ pay ticket validation reply. The game service transaction information may be player tracking information, a bar code for an award, a bar code for a prize, a bar code for a food service, and a bar code for a accommodation service or a EZ pay ticket bar code.
Another aspect of the invention provides a method for providing a game service in a game playing area using a hand-held device. The method may be characterized as including the following steps, 1) contacting a game player in the game playing area, 2) selecting a game service interface on the hand-held device, 3) inputting game service transaction information, 4) validating the game service transaction information, and 5) providing a game service where the game service may be comprised of one or more game service transactions. Additionally, the method may include one or more of the following steps, a) prior to contacting the game player, assigning a hand-held device to a game service representative, b) generating a receipt for the game service transaction, c) unassigning the hand-held device to a game service representative and d) reconciling a transaction history stored on a memory on the hand-held device.
In preferred embodiments, the game service interface may be a registration interface, a transaction reconciliation interface, a prize validation interface, a ticket validation interface, a food service interface, an accommodation service interface, a gaming operation interface, a login interface, voice interface or an input/output interface. The game service transaction may be a ticket validation request, a ticket validation reply, player tracking information, operator information, a prize validation request, a prize validation reply, a food service request, a food service reply, an accommodation request, an accommodation reply, a maintenance request, a maintenance reply, a print request, a print reply, or a transaction confirmation. The game service transaction information may be player tracking information, a bar code for an award, a bar code for a prize, a bar code for a food service, a bar code for an EZ pay ticket and a bar code for a accommodation service. The game service transaction information may be input from a card reader, a bar-code reader, a gaming machine, a transaction server, a storage device, a key board, a touch screen, a microphone or a personal digital assistant and may be output to an output mechanism including a printer, a personal digital assistant, a smart card, a transaction server, a gaming machine, or a storage device.
Another aspect of the invention may provide a method for generating a game service transaction in a hand-held device. The method may be characterized as including the following steps, 1) sending a game service transaction validation request to a transaction server wherein the transaction validation request is one or more data packets, 2) receiving a game service transaction validation reply from the transaction server, 3) when the game service transaction is completed, sending a transaction confirmation to the transaction server 4) and when the game service transaction is cancelled, sending a transaction cancellation to the transaction server. The one or more data packets may contain bar code information or player tracking information and may be sent via the wire-less communication interface. For game service transactions (e.g. EZ pay ticket validation, a prize ticket validation, an award ticket validation, a food service, an accommodation service, or a prize service), the transaction validation request may be an EZ pay ticket validation request, a prize validation request, an award validation request, or a maintenance validation request and the transaction validation reply may approve the game service transaction.
Another aspect of the invention may provide a method for generating a game service transaction in a transaction server. The method may be characterized as including the following steps, 1) receiving a transaction validation request from a hand-held device, 2) marking the transaction request pending, 3) generating a transaction validation reply and 4) sending the transaction validation reply to the hand-held device. Additionally, the method may include the steps of a) receiving a transaction confirmation from the hand-held device and marking the transaction complete and b) identifying the clerk validation terminal which owns the ticket and sending a pay request to the clerk validation ticket.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a game service transaction network in a game playing area. The game service transaction network may be characterized as including 1) one or more gaming machines, 2) one or more hand-held devices providing game service transactions in the game playing area using a wire-less communication interface, 3) one or more transaction servers and 4) one or more transaction server receivers allowing the transaction servers to receive communications from the wire-less communication interfaces on the one or more hand-held devices and send communication to the wire-less communication interfaces on the one or more hand-held devices where the gaming machines generate tickets that are read by the hand-held devices. Additionally, the game service transaction network may include one or more transaction relays which relay communications from the hand-held devices to the one or more transaction server receivers. The gaming machines in the game service transaction network may include video slot machines, mechanical slot machines, video black jack machines, video pai gow poker machines, video poker machines and video keno machines.